CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF   EDUCATION 

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REPORT 


OF  THF. 


UC-NRLF 


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State  Supervisor 


OF 


Physical  Education 


January  16,  1918  to  June  30,  1918 


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42S63 


CALIFORNIA  STATE  PRINTING  OFFICE 

SACRAMENTO 

1919 


GIFT   OF 


CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD   OF   EDUCATION 


REPORT 


OF  THE 


State  Supervisor 


OF 


Physical  Education 


January  16,  1918  to  June  30,  1918 


CALIFORNIA  STATE  PRINTING  OFFICE 

SACRAMENTO 

1919 


42963 


CONTENTS. 


PAGB 

LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 3 

REPORT  OF  THE  STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.,  5 

DUTIES  UNDER  THE  LAW 5 

THE  NEW  DEMAND  FOR  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION  AND  ITS  FUNCTION  IN  THE 

SCHOOL  PROGRAM (> 

THE  PROGRAM 17 

THE  DEVELOPMENT  AND  ADMINISTRATION  OF  THE  STATE  PROGRAM__  21 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL. 


To  the  Honorable  State  Board  of  Education. 

LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN:  In  accordance  with  your  request  I  have 
the  honor  to  submit  to  you  the  report  of  the  State  Supervisor  of 
Physical  Education  for  the  period  beginning  with  his  assumption  of 
duties,  January  16,  1918. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

CLARK  W.  HETHERINGTON, 

State  Supervisor  of  Physical  Education. 


393284 


REPORT  OF  THE  STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION. 

The  duties  of  the  State  Supervisor  of  Physical  Education  as  defined 
(in  chapter  668,  statutes  of  1917)  by  the  "act  to  provide  for  the 
organization  and  supervision  of  courses  in  physical  education  in  ele- 
mentary, secondary  and  normal  schools  of  the  state"  are  stated  as 
follows : 

"The  supervisor  of  physical  education  *  *  *  shall  exercise 
general  supervision  over  the  courses  of  physical  education  in 
elementary  and  secondary  schools  of  the  state;  shall  exercise  gen- 
eral control  over  all  athletic  activities  of  the  public  schools; 
shall  advise  school  officials,  school  boards  and  teachers  in  matters 
of  physical  education ;  shall  visit  and  investigate  the  work  in 
physical  education  in  the  public  schools  and  shall  perform  such 
other  duties  as  may  be  assigned  to  him  by  the  state  board  of 
education. ' ' 

The  duties  of  the  state  supervisor  in  supervision,  advice,  visitation 
and  investigation  are  indicated  by  the  provisions  of  the  law: 

1.  That  boards  of  education  and  high  school  boards  shall  prescribe 
courses    of   physical    education    in   accordance   with    aims   which   are 
stated  in  the  law. 

2.  That  the  superintendents  of  schools,  boards  of  education,  boards 
of  school  trustees  and  high  school  boards  shall  enforce  the  courses  of 
physical  education  thus  prescribed. 

3.  That  all  pupils  enrolled  in  the  elementary  schools  who  are  not 
excused,  shall  attend  such  courses  during  periods  which  shall  average 
twenty  minutes  in  each  school  day  and  that  all  high  school  pupils  who 
are  not  excused  shall  attend  such  course  for  at  least  two  hours  each 
week. 

4.  That  when  the  number  of  pupils  in  any  city,  county  or  school  dis- 
trict is  sufficient,  such  city,  or  county,  or  district  shall  employ  a  com- 
petent supervisor  and  such  special  teachers  of  physical  education  as 
may  be  necessary. 

The  law  makes  it  the   duty   of  the   State  Board  of  Education: 
1.  To  appoint  a  State  Supervisor  of  Physical  Education. 

To  compile  or  cause  to  be  compiled  and  printed  a  manual  in 

physical  education  for  distribution  to  teachers  in  the  public  schools 

of  the  state. 

3.  To  adopt  such  rules  and  regulations  as  it  may  deem  necessary 

and  proper  to  secure  the  establishment  of  courses  in  physical  education 

in  secondary  and  elementary  schools  in  accordance  with  the  provisions 

of  the  act,  and 

2—42963 


6  CAUFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

4.  To  prescribe  a  course  in  physical  education  and  make  the  com- 
pletion of  such  course  a  requirement  for  graduation  in  the  several 
normal  schools  of  the  state. 

By  request,  the  duty  of  the  State  Board  of  Education  to  compile 
or  cause  to  be  compiled  a  manual  in  physical  education,  was  added  to 
the  duties  of  the  State  Supervisor  of  Physical  Education,  who  was 
therefore  required — 

1.  To  interpret  physical  education  as  the  basis  for  a  state  program 
in  physical  education. 

2.  To  present  the  program  in  the  manual  for  the  guidance  of  school 
officials  and  teachers. 

3.  To  develop  and  administer  the  program  through  "supervision," 
"advice,"  "visitation,"  and  "investigation,"  as  required  by  law. 

This  report  will  cover  each  of  these  duties. 

I.     THE  NEW  DEMAND  FOR  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION  AND  ITS 
FUNCTIONS  IN  THE  SCHOOL  PROGRAM. 

The  California  state  law  requiring  physical  education  in  all  the 
public  schools  of  the  state  represents  a  final  expression  of  public 
opinion  which  has  been  developing  for  several  years.  Seven  states* 
have  recently  enacted  physical  education  laws  and  in  many  other 
states  similar  laws  are  being  agitated. 

This  is  a  new  demand.  The  causes  of  the  past  neglect  will  illuminate 
this  new  demand. 

First:  The  school,  as  an  institution,  developed  to  teach  the  written 
language,  the  three  R's,  and  the  cultural  content  of  books.  All  the 
rest  of  education,  including  physical  education,  was  left  to  the  natural 
discipline  of  the  home  and  the  community.  The  book  curriculum 
still  holds  its  traditional  sway,  though  the  "practical"  and  vocational 
activities  are  about  to  change  the  balance.  Physical  education  is  still 
in  a  difficult  position.  The  theory  of  it  has  been  neglected  by  schools 
of  education.  The  school  man  has  not  thought  of  it  as  his  problem. 
He  does  not  understand  it. 

Second:  Public  opinion  has  not  gained  strength  to  command  an 
efficient  organization  of  physical  education,  because  only  within  a 
few  years  have  we  come  as  a  nation  out  of  the  dominating  influences 
of  pioneer  life.  In  the  youth  and  the  traditions  of  the  generation 
which  until  recently  controlled  public  opinion,  life  was  more  generally 
in  the  open,  more  strenuous,  varied  and  exciting.  Children  had  a 
natural,  outdoor  life  which  stimulated  play  and  they  entered  directly 
into  the  simple  multitudinous  activities  of  the  home  and  the  com- 
munity and  they  imitated  these  activities  in  dramatic  play.  Adult 

*New  York,  New  Jersey,  Nevada,  Rhode  Island,  Maryland,  Delaware,  Illinois. 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  7 

recreative  customs  were  closely  knit  into  the  domestic,  industrial  and 
social  life  and  children  entered  into  these  activities.  Hence,  there 
has  ~been  no  general  consciousness  of  the  need  for  an  institutionally 
organized  play  or  physical  education. 

Third:  American  Puritanism  with  its  fear  of  pleasure  and  play, 
established  prejudices  which  fostered  the  neglect  of  physical  education. 
American  children  have  suffered  from  the  common  idea  that  play  was 
synonymous  with  fooling  or  activity  that  was  not  worth  while".  Closely 
associated  with  those  feelings  are  the  subtle  survivals  of  mediaeval 
asceticism  with  its  contempt  for  the  physical,  and  mediaeval  scholasticism 
with  its  exaltation  of  the  intellect.  These  have  many  ramifications  of 
attitude  and  feeling  in  educational  and  cultural  thought,  especially  in 
our  universities,  and  have  fostered  the  neglect  of  the  "physical"  side 
of  education. 

Fourth:  As  traditional  educational  thought  and  research  have 
been  directed  to  the  intellectual  side  of  education  and  its  psycho- 
logical foundations,  and  the  corresponding  philosophy  of  physical 
education  and  its  physiological  functions  have  been  neglected  by  the 
schools  of  education,  school  officials  have  been  left  without  criteria 
for  judging  the  functions  or  values  of  physical  education  and  have 
tolerated  in  many  cities  cheap  adaptations  of  gymnastic  systems  which 
grew  in  foreign  soil,  and  which  had  no  relationship  to  American  life 
or  ideals  and  which  were  as  barren  of  results  in  developing  efficient 
American  citizens  as  they  were  in  intelligible  purpose.  This  common 
procedure  has  not  inspired  enthusiasm. 

THE  NEW  DEMAND  AND  IDEALS. 

In  contrast  to  these  older  attitudes  in  physical  education,  a  great 
social  change  and  several  social  movements  have  been  in  progress  which 
have  created  a  new  public  opinion  and  a  new  practical  procedure  in 
physical  education  indigenous  to  the  soil  of  American  life  and  needs. 
These  may  be  stated  briefly. 

THE  SOCIAL  CHANGE. 

Since  1860  a  complete  change  in  our  national  social  life  has  taken 
place  through  the  introduction  of  machinery  into  modern  industry. 
This  has  caused  a  shift  of  population  to  the  city  with  its  specialized 
mechanical  life,  and  reflex  influence  on  rural  life.  It  has  wrecked  the 
old  home.  The  old  home  was  an  industrial  and  social  center  as  well  as 
a  center  of  domestic  life.  It  was  a  great  educational  institution.  But, 
the  modern  city,  built  without  consideration  for  the  physical  or  moral 
welfare  of  the  children,  has  stripped  the  home  of  occupations  of  educa- 
tional value,  specialized  the  occupations  of  parents  until  they  are 
meaningless  for  the  children,  and  left  the  children  to  play  on  the 


8  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

streets  without  organization  or  leadership.  Parents  can  not  meet  the 
new  need  for  organized  occupations  and  leadership.  They  do  not  have 
the  space,  the  equipment,  the  time  or  training.  These  are  the  problems 
of  the  expert. 

These  influences  have  extended  to  rural  life  until  rural  children  are 
worse  off  than  city  children. 

As  a  result  of  these  social  changes  the  whole  burden  of  education  and 
the  welfare  of  children  has  been  shifted  to  the  school  and  no  power  in 
our  social  life  can  change  the  responsibility. 

THE  ATHLETIC  MOVEMENT. 

Among  the  social  movements  which  have  created  our  national  ideals 
and  incipient  procedure  in  physical  education,  the  oldest  is  the  athletic 
movement.  Starting  before  the  Civil  War,  gaining  momentum  as  a 
result  of  the  outdoor  life  of  the  war,  and  favored  by  the  American  spirit 
and  the  close  proximity  of  colleges  and  academies,  athletics  began  a 
development  which  stretched  across  the  continent  in  the  eighties  and 
nineties  and  which  made  them  practically  universal  in  colleges,  high 
schools,  Y.  M.  C.  A. 's  and  clubs.  Neglected  by  college  and  school  men 
as  vacant  lot  amusements,  they  developed  as  spectator  athletics  icith  a 
string  of  evils.  These  evils  caused  several  waves  of  reform  and  the 
gradual  development  of  faculty  control.  But  in  spite  of  the  evils,  the 
tremendous  interest  excited  by  the  interschool  and  especially  the  great 
intercollegiate  contests,  contributed  forcefully  to  the  creation  of  national 
ideals  of  physical  development,  training,  sportsmanship,  etc.  The  nar- 
row-chested, pasty-faced  dig,  as  the  ideal  of  a  student,  went  out  of 
existence ;  the  athlete  took  his  place. 

Further,  during  the  last  eighteen  years  there  has  been  a  development 
of  forms  of  athletics  and  organizations  of  athletics  for  all  boys  and 
girls  above  ten  years  of  age  and  a  steadily  increasing  demand  for 
athletics  for  the  masses. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  World  War  all  of  these  athletic  tendencies 
were  seized  upon  as  aids  in  training  fighting  men  and  made  to  function 
tremendously  in  winning  the  war.  Public  opinion  has  changed  accord- 
ingly. It  seems  certain  that  the  young  soldiers  will  return  to  civil  life 
with  a  feeling  concerning  physical  development  and  athletics  as  a  means 
of  training  which  will  make  athletics  the  core  of  our  American  procedure 
in  physical  education. 

THE  PLAY  AND  RECREATION  MOVEMENT. 

In  1906  a  systematic  propaganda  for  play  and  recreation  began  with 
the  organization  of  the  Playground  and  Recreation  Association  of 
America.  The  original  emphasis  in  this  movement  was  on  playgrounds 
for  children,  but  the  association  extended  its  propaganda  to  cover  the 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION. 

whole  of  adult  recreation  and  the  organization  of  community  life.  Even 
in  these  larger  movements  the  outing  and  physical  recreations  and  the 
physical  welfare  of  the  people  have  received  their  emphasis  in  the 
development  of  public  opinion.  Still  the  playground  propaganda  con- 
tinues as  a  great  national,  even  world-wide  movement.  Starting  with 
the  idea  of  establishing  play  spaces  for  children  in  the  congested  parts 
of  our  cities,  experience  quickly  demonstrated  that  playgrounds  were 
essential  for  every  section  of  the  city  and  country,  that  their  significance 
for  morals  and  the  development  of  citizenship  was  as  important  as  their 
values  for  physical  development  and  health  and  that  proper  leadership 
was  even  more  important  than  the  space. 

In  this  movement  the  traditional  chasing  games  of  children,  almost 
forgotten,  were  'revived,  the  folk  games  of  our  immigrants  nationalized, 
dancing  put  on  a  new  and  educational  basis  and  athletics  for  boys  and 
girls  enormously  developed. 

On  many  playgrounds,  other  play  activities  than  physical  training 
activities  were  organized.  Such  playgrounds  were  really  children's 
social  centers  and  performed  some  of  the  functions  neglected  by  the 
public  school,  but  the  emphasis  was  always  on  the  playground  activities 
proper,  i.  e.,  the  space,  equipment  and  leadership  for  vigorous  games, 
apparatus,  gymnastics,  dancing,  athletics,  swimming,  etc.  In  this  sense 
the  playground  is  essentially  a  physical  training  plant  and  the  activities 
of  the  playground  essentially  physical  training  activities,  hence,  the 
playground  movement  has  created  a  public  opinion  in  favor  of  essential 
elements  in  an  American  program  of  physical  education  especially  for 
children  as  distinct  from  youth. 

Until  recently,  playgrounds  have  been  developed  largely  under  park 
boards  or  special  playground  or  recreation  commissions,  but  now  the 
movement  is  in  full  swing  to  bring  these  new  educational  institutions 
under  their  proper  administrative  control — the  school  boards.  Public 
opinion  is  realizing  that  the  school  is  the  natural  extra-home  center  of 
child  life  and  that  a  school  without  a  large  playground  is  an  educational 
monstrosity.  Economic  necessity,  which  will  not  allow  a  duplication  of 
public  expense,  will  compel  recreation  commissions  to  deal  more  espe- 
cially with  adult  recreation  and  stand  guard  perhaps  for  some  time  to 
come  to  see  that  boards  of  education  do  not  neglect  the  child  by  failing 
to  provide  large  playgrounds  for  each  new  school  building  and  around 
or  near  old  school  buildings. 

EDUCATIONAL  RECREATION  MOVEMENTS. 
Closely  related  to  the  play  and  recreation  movement  has  been  the 
development  of  several  associations  for  an  educational  organization  of 
recreation.     The   most   conspicuous   of   these   are   the   Boy   Scouts   of 
America  and  the  Camp  Fire  Girls. 


10  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

These  movements  have  emphasized  and  demonstrated  the  pedagogical 
soundness  for  the  early  adolescent  years  of  the  social  organization  with 
its  membership  and  ideals,  the  program  of  achievements  with  symbols  of 
achievement,  the  group  leadership,  the  tactical  control  of  the  group,  the 
development  of  protective  skills,  first  aid  and  resourcefulness  in  the 
open,  through  a  systematic  organization  of  outing  activities,  etc. 

The  programs  of  these  associations  cover  other  than  physical  training 
activities,  but  the  form  of  social  organization,  the  idea  of  the  program, 
the  citizenship  aims,  the  first  aid,  the  outing  activities,  the  leadership, 
the  tactical  control,  etc.,  have  emphasized  in  public  opinion  essential 
elements  in  a  program  of  physical  education  for  the  adolescent  years. 

THE  HEALTH  MOVEMENT. 

The  health  movement  has  raked  public  opinion  fore  and  aft.  This 
movement  has  had  its  popular  and  its  scientific  sides. 

Some  twenty  years  ago  the  increasing  strenuousness  and  confinement 
of  their  occupations  began  to  develop  among  business  and  professional 
men  a  widespread  consciousness  of  a  personal,  physical  need.  It  had 
no  scientific  leadership.  The  extent  of  the  feeling  of  need  is  illustrated 
by  the  host  of  advertising  ''Physical  Culturists"  who  arose  to  supply 
a  demand  for  physical  exercise.  The  advertising  columns  of  any  of 
the  popular  magazines  will  illustrate  the  point.  Some  of  these  people 
made  large  sums  of  money  in  a  single  year.  The  need  has  not  yet  been 
met  by  an  adequate  procedure.  Newer  expressions  of  it  are  seen  in 
the  great  development  of  golf  and  other  recreations  and  the  war  efforts 
to  keep  "fit."  This  all  represents  a  development  of  public  opinion  in 
favor  of  the  first  essential  element  in  physical  education,  physical 
exercise. 

The  scientific  health  movement  arose  on  the  foundation  of  bacteri- 
ology. Several  of  the  dreaded  diseases  of  history  have  come  under 
sanitary  control  through  the  discovery  of  the  germ  or  the  germ  carrier 
and  have  lost  their  terrors.  The  death  rate  from  contagious  diseases 
has  steadily  declined.  Medicine  has  changed  its  emphasis  in  part  from 
the  cure  of  disease  to  the  prevention  of  disease.  Federal  and  state 
departments  of  health  have  carried  on  active,  educational  campaigns 
until  every  intelligent  citizen  knows  that  preventable  diseases  are  an 
index  of  community  ignorance,  selfishness  and  filth,  and  that  the 
country  can  free  itself  from  most  contagious  diseases  when  it  has  the 
intelligence,  the  conscience  and  the  conviction. 

While  there  has  been  a  steady  decline  in  the  death  rate  from 
contagious  diseases,  there  has  been  in  the  last  thirty  years  a  steady 
rise  from  the  degenerative  diseases,  i.  e.,  disease  of  the  heart,  lungs,  kid- 
neys, liver,  nervous  system,  etc.  Many  reasons  have  been  assigned  as  the 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  11 

iuse  for  this  increase  in  organic  diseases,  but  it  seems  clear  that  the 
main  cause  and  the  one  that  is  peculiarly  related  to  the  results,  is 
the  decrease  during  the  last  half  century  in  out  door  life  and  vigor- 
ous physical  activity.  Physical  training,  therefore,  is  the  preventive 
measure. 

As  a  part  of  this  great  health  movement,  educational  hygiene  (school 
hygiene)  started  as  an  extension  of  the  function  of  boards  of  health 
in  controlling  contagious  diseases.  Later,  study  showed  that  the  long 
hours  indoors  and  at  the  desks  were  hurting  the  child's  health.  Hence, 
heating,  lighting,  ventilation,  cleanliness,  etc.,  became  important  school 
problems,  and  the  hygiene  of  the  school  environment  and  school  activi- 
ties arose.  The  movement  then  passed  on  to  the  physical  condition 
of  the  child.  Investigation  showed  that  many  children  were  handi- 
capped in  their  school  progress  by  defective  teeth,  eyes,  ears,  nose, 
throat,  nutrition,  etc.,  so  preventive  and  corrective  measures  were 
undertaken. 

This  movement  is  not  yet  completed.  All  these  efforts  for  the  care 
and  welfare  of  the  child  are  preventive,  or  corrective.  They  need 
to  be  supplemented  by  a  constructive,  educational  program. 

THE  WAR  AND  THE  NATIONAL  PHYSICAL  CONDITION. 

For  several  years  the  public  has  been  learning  that  the  national 
physical  condition  was  not  satisfactory.  But  it  took  the  statistics  of 
the  physical  examinations  for  the  war  draft  to  arouse  public  con- 
science. These  statistics  struck  like  a  bomb.  Thirty-five  per  cent  } 
of  the  young  men  were  found  unfit  to  serve  their  country.  The  older 
statistics  of  the  army  and  navy  where  eighty  per  cent  and  ninety  per 
cent,  respectively,  of  the  applicants  for  enlistment  were  rejected,  were 
given  little  consideration  because  of  the  class  of  the  applicants,  but 
in  the  draft  the  whole  citizenship  of  the  most  virile  age  was  represented. 
"When  told  that  ninety  per  cent  of  this  physical  inefficiency  was  the 
product  of  the  neglect  of  a  rational  procedure  in  physical  education 
during  childhood  and  youth,  and  therefore  avoidable,  it  was  considered 
a  national  disgrace.  This  has  gripped  public  opinion.  America  has 
become  thoroughly  awake  to  a  serious  national  physical  need. 

THE  EDUCATIONAL  INTERPRETATIONS  OF  THE  MOVEMENTS. 

These  tendencies  in  public  opinion  indicate  what  earnest  parents 
and  those  interested  in  child  welfare  want.  The  demands  are  clear, 
but  they  need  formulation  in  educational  objectives,  which  may  be 
translated  into  a  practical  administrative  procedure  that  the  public 
can  understand  and  school  men  execute. 


12  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

The  functions  of  physical  education  may  be  considered  under  three 
broad  headings : 

1.  The  constructive  educational  aims. 

Physical  education  is  concerned  primarily  with  the  functions  of 
big-muscle  activities  in  the  growth  and  development  of  the  child. 
By  "big-muscle  activities"  is  meant  the  activities  of  the  playground, 
the  athletic  field,  the  track,  the  gymnasium,  the  swimming  pool,  the 
lawn,  the  open  country,  etc. 

The  functions  of  these  big-muscle  activities  are  developmental  and 
constructive  and  must  be  set  up  as  definite  educational  aims  which 
may  be  enumerated  as  follows: 

a.  Organic  development. 

On  big-muscle  activities,  organic  development  or  the  development 
of  the  organs  and  functions  of  nutrition  and  elimination  depend.  This 
means  a  development  of  the  heart,  lungs,  digestive  system,  heat- 
regulating  mechanism  and  the  nutritive  processes  in  general,  through 
the  heightened  activity  or  exercise  of  these  organs  and  functions  in 
vigorous,  big-muscle  activities  as  indicated  by  the  heart  throbbing, 
panting,  sweating,  increased  appetite,  assimiliation,  elimination,  etc. 
Organic  development  begins  in  the  random  movements  of  the  infant 
and  continues  in  the  creeping,  walking,  running  and  all  the  vigor- 
ous plays  and  games  of  childhood  and  youth — all  activities  which 
cause  a  quickening  of  respiration  or  heart  action.  The  process  is 
conspicuous  in  the  development  of  the  athlete. 

Experience  and  the  comparison  of  those  in  the  late-life  periods 
who  have  had  this  vigorous  activity  through  childhood  and  youth 
with  those  who  have  not  had  it,  have  convinced  us  that  organic  train- 
ing is  the  developmental  source  of  vitality  and  health,  the  capacity  to 
stand  the  wear  and  tear  of  strenuous  living  and  resist  many  of  the 
deteriorating  influences  of  infection.  The  exact  parallel  between  the 
rise  of  organic  diseases  in  the  last  thirty  years  and  the  decrease  in 
outdoor  vigorous  activities,  indicates  that  the  lack  of  the  latter  bears 
a  causal  relation  to  the  former.  It  seems  clear  also  that  some  of 
the  physical  defects  of  children  are  due  to  a  lack  of  the  necessary 
stimulus  to  nutrition  of  big-muscle  activities. 

Developed  organic  power  is  essential  for  efficiency  in  every  phase 
of 'life  adjustment  and  it  is  a  power  which  must  be  gained  by  the 
accumulation  of  development  all  through  childhood  -and  youth.  The 
neglect  of  this  development  for  either  childhood  or  youth  is  fatal. 
The  developmental  results  of  exercise  cannot  be  "made  up."  Organic 
education  is  the  most  fundamental,  the  least  understood,  and  the  most 
neglected  of  all  phases  of  education. 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  13 

b.  Development  of  the  nervous  system. 

In  big-muscle  activities  the  nervous  system  is  developed.  Every 
movement  from  creeping  and  walking  to  the  complex  activities  and 
skills  exhibited  in  games,  gymnastics  and  athletics,  must  be  learned 
and  every  learned  movement  represents  a  developed  nervous  center. 

Every  group  of  muscles  has  a  nervous  center  which  controls  it. 
There  are  nervous  centers  which  control  the  big  muscles  of  the  trunk 
and  limbs  and  there  are  nervous  centers  which  control  the  small 
muscles  of  the  fingers,  the  tongue  or  the  eye.  The  nervous  centers 
controlling  the  big  muscles  were  made  to  carry  the  burdens  of  life,  not 
the  nervous  centers  controlling  the  small  muscles.  Yet  our  civiliza- 
tion is  throwing  the  burden  of  activity  on  the  finer  muscles  and  the 
nervous  centers  controlling  them.  The  big  muscles  and  controlling 
nervous  centers  are  relatively  little  used,  except  in  play  and  organized 
recreation,  and  on  this  fact  the  physical  problem  of  civilization  largely 
depends. 

Objection  is  frequently  made  to  the  development  of  large  muscles 
as  our  civilization  does  not  require  such  development.  This  is  a  social 
argument  without  knowledge  of  the  relation  of  muscular  development 
to  nervous  development.  Muscular  development  is  a  symbol — a  symbol 
of  nervous  development  and  power.  The  nervous  centers  controlling 
the  muscles  can  be  developed  only  through  exercising  them  by  exer- 
cising the  muscles.  A  thorough  development  of  the  big  muscles  means 
a  large  development  of  the  nervous  centers  controlling  these  muscles. 
This  is  the  source  of  strength  and  skill,  but  vastly  more  important, 
it  is  the  source  of  developed  nervous  vitality  and  staying  power. 
Every  developed  nervous  center  means  so  much  will  power  and  capacity 
to  endure.  Nervous  instability  has  increased  in  recent  years  as  the 
higher  nervous  centers  have  been  compelled  to  carry  new  burdens 
without  a  thorough  development  of  the  supporting  fundamental  nerv- 
ous centers. 

Like  organic  development,  this  nervous  development  must  be  gained 
through  the  whole  period  of  childhood  and  youth.  It  cannot  be  gained 
after  maturity,  and  it  cannot  be  gained  in  any  one  year  or  group  of 
years  either  in  childhood  or  youth.  No  process  of  training  can  give 
the  boy  of  eight  the  development  possible  to  a  boy  of  eighteen.  And 
no  training  will  give  the  boy  of  eighteen  the  development  that  should 
naturally  be  his,  if  the  training  of  previous  years  has  been  neglected. 
The  growth  order  in  the  child  must  be  observed,  and  the  normal  devel- 
opment possible  for  each  age  must  be  secured  or  there  is  incomplete 
physical  citizenship.  Not  only  does  development  require  activity  at 
each  age  period,  but  it  requires  huge  amounts  of  this  activity  espe- 
cially during  late  childhood  and  the  early  years  of  adolescence. 


14  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

After  maturity,  it  takes  but  little  exercise  relatively  on  the  part 
of  an  adult  who  has  had  a  thorough  development,  to  keep  fit.  The 
function  of  exercise  becomes  merely  a  hygienic  function. 

c.  Character  development. 

In  the  natural  big-muscle  activities  of  childhood  and  youth,  funda- 
mental qualities  of  character  and  citizenship  are  developed.  There 
is  no  such  thing  as  the  development  of  morals,  character  or  citizen- 
ship that  is  not  centered  in  activities  which  express  instinct  ten- 
dencies and  emotions.  The  worth  of  the  activities  for  moral  or  char- 
acter development  is  determined  by  the  nature  of  the  emotions  exer- 
cised. In  games  and  athletic  activities  all  the  fundamental  social 
instincts  and  emotions  are  exercised  and  trained.  The  social  contacts 
cause  the  expression  of  good  or  bad  manners.  There  is  rivalry, 
co-operation,  leadership  and  subordination,  the  rules  or  laws  of  the 
game  and  the  laws  of  eligibility,  victory  or  defeat  and  the  group  disci- 
pline in  all  of  these.  Sportsmanship  is  the  golden  rule  applied  to  the 
ethics  of  social  competition. 

In  no  other  activities  does  leadership  have  such  power.  In  this 
leadership  we  have  the  laboratory  method  in  moral  education. 

d.  The  development  of  the  intellect. 

In  big-muscle  activities,  the  intellect  functions  in  learning  move- 
ments. Great  skill  in  judging  and  executing  movements  is  developed. 
Every  learned  movement  or  skill  means  so  much  motor  will  power. 
These  powers,  developed  in  the  natural  play  activities  of  childhood 
and  youth,  give  economic  and  great  protective  and  recreative  motor 
adaptability.  Thinking  out  problems  of  skill  and  physical  efficiency 
and  problems  of  health  and  recreation  are  the  higher  forms  of  this 
intellectual  functioning. 

The  intellect  functions  also  in  the  social  problems  of  play.  .  Human 
nature  and  the  problems  of  social  intercourse  are  thought  about  first 
hand.  It  has*  been  said  that  two  men  never  know  each  other  until 
they  play  together.  In  the  child's  and  youth's  big-muscle  competitive 
plays,  they  think  the  actions  and  reactions  of  human  nature  and  gain 
insights  essential  for  democratic  sympathies.  These  constitute  the 
broad  social  consciousness  which  is  the  tap  root  of  developed  general 
intelligence.  They  do  not  take  the  place  of  cultural  information  but 
they  are  the  foundation  for  it  and  make  culture  less  arrogant. 

The  higher  reaches  of  this  intellectual  functioning  are  indicated 
below  under  Teaching  Efficient  Living. 

To  summarize,  the  functions  of  big-muscle  activities  are  to  develop 
the  fundamental  capacities  underlying  all  phases  of  human  adjust- 
ment. Put  in  their  broad  educational  relationships,  education  is  the 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  15 

leadership  of  activities  which  give  development  and  adjustment  accord- 
ing to  racial  ideals;  physical  education  is  that  phase  of  education 
concerned  with  the  functions  of  big-muscle  activities  in  the  educational 
process.  It  is  the  foundation  upon  which  all  the  rest  of  education 
is  built. 

2.  Control  of  growth  handicaps. 

Physical  education  is  concerned  in  the  second  place,  with  the  con- 
trol of  growth  influences,  especially  growth  handicaps.  This  is  essen- 
tial if  the  developmental  results  of  educational  activities  outlined  above 
are  to  be  secured. 

The  individual's  growth  and  therefore  development  is  determined 
by  the  following  influences: 

1.  By  the  individual's  own  habits,  moulded  by  home  and  community 

conditions,  as  for  example: 

a.  Food    (quality    and    quantity). 
&.  Sleep  and  rest. 

c.  Cleanliness  of  the  teeth,  mouth,  nose,  skin  and  clothing. 

d.  Elimination. 

e.  Air  and  sunshine. 

/.  Temperature,  clothing  and  housing. 

g.  Vices. 

h.  Mental  moods. 

V  . 

2.  By   the   physical   environment   of   the   school   and   the  home,   such 

as  ventilation,  lighting,  heating,  cleanliness,  etc. 

3.  By  physical  defects,  such  as  defective  eyes,  ears,  nose,  throat,  etc., 

causing — 

a.  Depressed  activity. 

fr.  Maladjustment. 

c.  Reflex  irritations. 

d.  Sources   of  infection. 

e.  Poor  nutrition,  etc. 

4.  By  contagious  diseases. 

5.  By  the  work  and  duties  of  the  child,  both  school  studies  and  home 

duties. 

These  influences  in  the  case  of  any  child  may  be  favorable  or 
unfavorable  for  growth  and  development  or  for  any  of  the  results 
of  education.  They  condition  the  child's  opportunity  for  progress. 
If  they  are  favorable,  growth  is  normal  and  educational  effort  may 
proceed  without  hindrance.  If  they  are  unfavorable,  even  in  what 


16  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

has  been  popularly  considered  some  trifling  matter,  the  child's  happi- 
ness, progress  or  success  in  life  may  be  handicapped  or  even  ruined. 
Educational  effort  is  wasted  in  so  far  as  it  proceeds  without  a  con- 
trol of  unfavorable  growth  influences.  Control  is  an  educational 
necessity.  This  is  the  preventive  and  corrective  function  in  guiding 
the  child's  growth,  development  and  adjustment. 

It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  this  control  of  growth  influences 
is  merely  preventive  or  corrective.  It  is  permissive  for  it  makes  pos- 
sible the  natural  tendencies  of  Nature  in  growth  to  proceed  normally 
and  without  handicaps.  It  does  not  develop  power  of  any  descrip- 
tion. It  is  not  constructive.  The  constructive  development  and  adjust- 
ment according  to  racial  ideals  is  purely  the  product  of  educational 
activities.  Activity  is  the  sole  means  of  education.  Therefore,  pre- 
ventive and  corrective  measures  cannot  take  the  place  in  producing 
efficient  citizens,  of  the  developmental  influences  of  educational  activi- 
ties. This  important  fact  is  not  generally  recognized.  It  is  the  most 
important  fact  in  present  day  thought  concerning  national  efficiency. 

3.  Teaching  efficient  living. 

The  third  phase  of  physical  education  is  concerned  with  teaching 
efficient  living,  i.  e.,  teaching  certain  phases  of  the  capacity  for  self 
direction  according  to  laws  or  standards  of  right  living  which  naturally 
arise  out  of  the  experiences  in  big-muscle  activities  and  the  control 
of  growth  handicaps. 

The  human  infant  is  the  most  dependent  creature  that  lives.  The 
developed  adult  citizen  is  the  most  resourceful  creature  that  lives. 
He  can  control  his  behavior  according  to  information.  The  transition 
from  infantile  dependence  to  adult  independent  self  direction  is  very 
gradual.  While  the  child  is  dependent  or  relatively  dependent,  his 
activities  must  be  directed  to  gain  educational  ends  and  his  growth 
influences  must  be  rigidly  controlled.  But  education  is  a  success 
only  in  proportion  as  it  converts  complete  dependence  into  independent 
self  direction  according  to  knowledge  of  standards  or  laws  of  living. 

This  is  the  highest  product  of  the  teacher's  function  in  leading 
activities  to  gain  development  and  adjustment  according  to  racial 
ideals.  All  through  the  educational  process  ideals  have  been  guides. 
In  teaching  self  direction  this  whole  procedure  must  be  turned  over 
gradually  to  the  individual  being  educated.  It  is  as  though  the 
teacher  said  finally:  "I  have  protected  you  and  guided  your  develop- 
ment and  adjustment  according  to  these  ideals.  Now  you  must 
take  over  the  procedure  and  direct  it  yourself."  This  deliverance, 
however,  must  be  done  gradually.  It  is  a  product  of  the  whole  educa- 
tional procedure  and  arises  directly  out  of  the  procedure. 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  17 

The  self  directing  capacities  which  physical  education  should  estab- 
lish are  concerned  especially  with  the  laws  of  health  and  certain 
fundamental  laws  of  social  behavior. 


II.     THE  PROGRAM. 

The  three  broad  functions  of  physical  education  outlined  above, 
when  translated  into  a  practical  program  for  the  public  schools  give 
three  phases  of  effort  as  follows : 

1.  The   constructive,    educational   effort:  The   program   of   physical 
training  activities. 

2.  The    preventive    and    corrective    efforts :  The    program    for    con- 
trolling growth  handicaps. 

3.  T-he  establishment  of  the   capacity  for  self  direction:  The  pro- 
gram in  teaching  efficient  living.     All  of  these  efforts  require  admin- 
istration. 

THE  PROGRAM  IN  PHYSICAL  TRAINING  ACTIVITIES. 

In  setting  up  the  program  of  physical  training  activities,  three 
broad  principles  have  controlled  the  whole  plan: 

1.  The  selection  of  activities  that  will  get  physical  training  results 
under  present-day  social  conditions. 

2.  The  organization  of  the  activities  according  to  the  time  limits 
imposed  by  present-day  school  conditions. 

3.  The  organization  of  the  social  tendencies  of  the  age  periods. 

THE  ACTIVITIES  SELECTED. 

On  the  program  of  activities  all  the  constructive  or  developmental 
results  depend,  and  the  development  is  always  in  proportion  to  the 
intensity  and  duration  of  the  daily  activities,  within  the  normal  limits 
of  exhaustion. 

During  childhood  and  youth  the  only  activities  that  will  be  carried 
on  with  intensity  for  any  length  of  time  are  the  play  activities,  such 
as  self-testing  activities  on  the  apparatus,  the  dramatic  activities,  the 
folk  games,  the  chasing  games,  the  athletic  activities,  boxing,  fencing 
and  wrestling,  the  water  activities,  especially  swimming,  rowing  and 
paddling,  the  winter  sports,  etc.  These  activities  tend  to  be  continued 
because  of  the  pleasure  they  give. 

Formalized  and  artificial  activities,  such  as  marching  and  gymnastic 
drills  are  fatiguing  and  particularly  uninteresting  after  the  novelty 
has  worn  off  and  they  cease  to  go  on  as  soon  as  the  compulsion  is  dis- 
continued. While  they  have  value  and  a  place  in  the  physical  train- 
ing program,  the  value  is  limited,  largely  dependent  upon  the  skill  of 


18  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

the  teacher  and  at  best  only  supplementary  to  the  larger  values  of  the 
play  activities. 

A  third  division  of  big-muscle  activities,  arises  out  of  the  daily  need 
of  getting  from  place  to  place,  the  outing  impulses  and  the  industrial 
activities.  These  activities  become  important  for  physical  training 
purposes  in  the  adolescent  years,  but  they  are  very  difficult  to  organize 
systematically  for  physical  training  results  except  at  week-ends  or  on 
holidays,  while  physical  training  must  be  a  daily  procedure.  They 
are  valuable  to  supplement  and  expand  the  more  easily  organized  play 
activities. 

For  these  reasons  the  natural,  pleasure  driven,  disciplining  big- 
muscle  play  activities  of  childliood  and  youth  have  been  made  the  core 
of  the  state  program  of  activities  and  the  formalized  and  related 
activities  organized  to  support  and  expand  these. 

THE  TIME  PROBLEM. 

The  time  problem  in  physical  training  must  be  solved  by  a  procedure 
that  works.  The  amount  of  time  necessary  to  get  physical  training 
results  in  the  production  of  efficient  citizens  amounts  to  between  four 
and  five  hours  per  day  during  childhood,  between  two  and  three  hours 
a  day  during  the  high  school  period  or  early  adolescence  and  between 
one  and  two  hours  a  day  in  the  college  period  or  later  adolescence. 
This  is  not  a  question  of  conflict  of  interests  in  subjects  of  study.  It 
is  the  time  essential  if  children  are  to  reach  maturity  with  the  devel- 
opment of  organic  power  necessary  to  stand  the  strain  of  the  functions 
of  life.  Without  this  development  the  higher  phases  of  education  are 
futile.  But  as  the  elementary  and  high  schools  are  organized  it  is 
impossible  to  get  the  necessary  amount  of  time  within  school  hours. 
Hence,  in  the  state  program  an  instructional  period  covering  the  min- 
imum time  of  the  law  and  coming  within  the  school  hours  on  the  one 
hand,  and  a  play  or  athletic  period  covering  the  time  before  school, 
after  school,  during  recess  and  on  Saturdays  and  holidays  have  been 
defined.  This  is  simply  an  organization  for  school  conditions  of  the 
procedure  of  learning  and  practice  that  has  always  gone  on  in  chil- 
dren's play. 

The.  instructional  period  is  the  period  primarily  for  instruction  in 
those  activities  that  will  function  during  the  play  or  athletic  period. 
Only  as  these  two  periods  are  looped  together,  can  the  time  and  there- 
fore the  physical  training  results  necessary  for  citizenship  be  secured. 
They  should  function  as  one.  It  has  been  demonstrated  that  if  chil- 
dren under  present-day  social  conditions  are  to  play  efficiently,  they 
must  be  taught  and  if  the  play  at  school  and  at  home  is  to  fulfill  its 
natural  functions,  the  activities  must  not  only  be  taught  in  the  instruc- 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  19 

tional  period,  but  a  part  of  the  play  time  out  of  school  hours  must  be] 
so  organized  that  the  activities  taught  will  be  established  as  habits. 

Associated  with  these  two  main  periods  the  state  program  provides 
for  a  relief  period  to  counteract  the  detrimental  influences  of  the 
school  activities  and  a  special  corrective  period  for  special  cases. 

THE  SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION. 

A  successful  program  of  physical  training  activities  requires  social 
organization  by  age  periods. 

Previous  to  ten  years  of  age,  children  must  be  divided  according  to 
age  needs  and  capacities  and  assigned  to  places  to  play  with  equipment 
and  proper  leadership.  Opportunities  and  leadership  are  all  that  is 
essential. 

After  ten  years  of  age,  for  three  or  four  years,  children  act  in  social 
groups  and  crave  achievement.  The  outing  activities  also  have  a  great 
appeal.  This  is  the  age,  therefore,  for  group  organization  in  simple 
contests  which  can  be  scored  to  visualize  achievement,  and  for  outing 
enterprises  with  records  of  achievement  in  outing  arts. 

With  adolescence,  especially  after  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age, 
group  social  achievement  becomes  equally  important  with  individual 
achievement  and  interest  awakens  in  adult  achievement.  In  this  age, 
the  spirit  in  the  organization  of  the  social  group  and  in  group  enter- 
prises and  achievements  becomes  all  important.  It  is  the  transition 
period  in  youth  before  the  full  assumption  of  real  adult  functions 
when  the  activities  and  the  organization  must  be  pre-recreative,  pre- 
civic,  pre-military  and  be  prophetic  of  adult  functions.  In  a  word, 
the  physical  training  activities  of  youth  must  bear  the  dignity  of  the 
functions  of  adult  life  while  still  remaining  essentially  the  natural 
competitive  enterprises  of  youth. 

2.  The  Procedure  in  Control  of  Groivth  Handicaps. 

The  program  for  the  control  of  growth  handicaps  must  be  effective 
for  the  children  of  the  rural  or  poorer  districts  as  well  as  for  the  chil- 
dren of  the  city  or  wealthy  and  progressive  districts.  For  this  reason 
the  program  must  be  built  up  in  the  elementary  schools  around  the 
class  room  teacher  and  the  instructor  or  director  of  physical  education 
in  the  high  schools. 

The  growth  influences  to  be  controlled  as  indicated  above  are  of  five 
classes,  as  follows : 

1.  The  child's  own  health  habits  and  home  influences,  i.   e.,  food, 
bathing,  clothing,  outdoor  air  and  sunshine,  posture,  elimination,  etc. 

2.  The  physical  environment  of  the  school  and  the  home,  i.  e.,  desk 


20  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

adjustments,  ventilation,  cleanliness,  lighting,  heating,  drinking  water, 
bathing  facilities,  toilets,  care  of  wraps,  etc. 

3.  Physical  defects  which  handicap  growth  and  development,  i.  e.t 
defective  eyes,  defective  ears,  defective  teeth,  nose  and  throat,  mal- 
nutrition, nervous  conditions,  etc. 

4.  Contagious  diseases. 

5.  Work  and  duties. 

The  procedure  for  the  control  of  these  influences  in  the  elementary 
school  is  centered  in  a  daily  class  and  individual  inspection.  This 
form  of  inspection  has  been  developed  in  the  schools  of  the  State  of 
New  York  with  very  wholesome  effects.  So  far  as  the  child  is  conscious, 
this  inspection  is  largely  a  matter  of  cleanliness  and  health  habits,  such 
as  cleanliness  of  face,  hands,  finger  nails,  teeth,  handkerchief,  clothing, 
shoes,  etc.,  and  such  items  as  amount  of  sleep,  ventilation  in  the  sleep- 
ing room,  time  in  the  open  air,  sunshine,  etc.  These  items  may  be 
scored  on  the  blackboard. 

This  general  class  inspection  is  supplemented  by  an  individual 
inspection  to  note  more  private  items  such  as  signs  of  disease,  condition 
of  teeth,  ears,  scalp,  bathing  habits,  etc. 

Detecting  signs  of  physical  defects  that  the  teacher  can  note  is  a 
special  part  of  the  individual  procedure. 

The  control  of  the  sanitary  environment  of  the  school  is  organized 
with  the  children  themselves  carrying  the  program  under  the  direction 
of  the  teacher,  especially  concerning  such  items  as  ventilation,  lighting, 
heating,  cleanliness,  etc. 

Desk  adjustments  and  the  seating  of  children  according  to  eyesight 
and  hearing  are  reduced  to  rules. 

It  has  been  demonstrated  that  the  elementary  teacher  can  carry 
effective  inspection  in  all  these  items,  but  his  efforts  must  be  supple- 
mented by  expert  help  in  suspicious  cases.  Where  illness,  contagious 
diseases,  or  physical  defects  are  suspected,  a  procedure  is  presented 
for  referring  these  cases  according  to  local  conditions,  to  the  home  and 
the  family  physician,  the  district  supervisor,  the  school  nurse  or  school 
physician. 

The  procedure  in  the  school  is  of  similar  character  with  adjustments 
to  the  age  periods  but  centered  in  the  physical  examination  given  or 
organized  by  the  physical  director. 

3.  Program  in  Teaching  Efficient  Living. 

The  program  in  teaching  efficient  living  is  built  directly  upon  the 
procedure  in  the  leadership  of  physical  training  activities  and  the 
control  of  growth  handicaps,  supplemented  by  courses,  finally,  to  sys- 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  21 

tematize  more  thoroughly  the  information  and  perfect  thoughtful 
judgment. 

By  teaching  efficient  living  is  meant  teaching  living  according  to 
law.  To  live  according  to  law  presupposes  knowledge  of  the  law. 
But  knowledge  of  right  is  notoriously  inefficient  as  a  regulator  of  right 
behavior.  Behavior  is  controlled  primarily  by  instinct  tendencies 
which  develop  through  experience  into  habits,  impulses,  emotional 
attitudes,  prejudices,  etc.,  ranging  up  into  ideals.  Even  the  teaching 
of  efficient  living  must  be  based  on  the  development  of  habits.  On  the 
other  hand,  even  good  habits  without  the  support  of  thoughtful  judg- 
ment may  break  down  under  new  conditions. 

The  program  in  teaching  efficient  living  or  the  laws  of  health  and 
social  behavior  is  in  the  early  grades  merely  a  guide  to  help  the  teacher 
develop  out  of  the  experiences  of  the  child  in  the  daily  physical  train- 
ing activities  and  out  of  the  daily  inspection  in  the  control  of  growth 
handicaps,  the  right  emotional  attitudes  and  understandings.  This 
procedure  is  continued  in  the  later  grades  and  the  high  school,  but  in 
these  age  periods  and  especially  in  the  high  school  the  great  mass  of 
habits,  attitudes  and  practical  information  gained  in  the  daily  activ- 
ities must  be  supplemented  by  the  organization  of  courses  which  will 
cause  the  pupils  to  think  through  and  complete  the  rationalization  of 
the  habits,  attitudes  and  information.  This  requires  co-operation 
between  the  courses  in  biology,  home  economics,  civics,  etc, 

III.  THE  DEVELOPMENT  AND  ADMINISTRATION  OF  THE 
STATE  PROGRAM. 

The  development  and  administration  of  the  state  program  is  largely 
fixed  by  the  duties  of  the  State  Supervisor  of  Physical  Education 
as  denned  by  law.  Restated  according  to  the  necessities  of  the  state 
situation,  the  duties  are : 

1.  To   give   "advice"  to  and  solve  problems   for  the  teachers  and 
school  officials  of  the  state. 

2.  To  "supervise"  and  give  field  instruction  to  teachers,  directors 
and  supervisors  in  carrying  out  the  program  as  outlined  in  the  manual. 

3.  To  "inspect"  and  "investigate"  the  efficiency  and  results  of  the 
physical  education  as  conducted  in  the  various  schools  of  the  state. 

4.  To   pass   upon   teacher   qualifications    and   promote   the   teacher 
training    courses    in    the    normal   schools   and    colleges    of   the    state. 

First  Duty:  To  give  advice  to  and  help  superintendents,  principals 
and  teachers  to  solve  local  problems.  These  problems  cover  the  inter- 
pretations and  requirements  of  the  law;  the  difficulties  in  organizing 


22  CALIFORNIA  STATE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION. 

physical  education  in  old  buildings  and  under  bad  local  conditions; 
the  organization  of  the  children,  the  physical  examinations,  excuses, 
etc.;  the  appointment  of  teachers;  the  construction  of  gymnasiums, 
athletic  fields  and  the  equipment  necessary  and  cost  of  the  same,  etc. 

This  information  must  be  given  either  by  correspondence  or  con- 
ference. It  is  largely  "office  work."  As  the  physical  education 
requirement  is  new,  most  of  the  schools  have  their  problems,  and  these 
problems  are  complicated  by  the  fact  that  most  of  the  trained  physical 
directors,  especially  men,  are  in  war  service.  The  amount  of  work 
involved  in  this  service  requires  one  person's  full  time. 

Second  Duty:  To  teach  the  teachers  and  directors  how  to  carry 
out  the  state  program.  This  is  the  most  important  immediate  task 
of  this  department  as  the  teachers  of  the  state  have  not  been  trained 
adequately  in  physical  education.  The  work  on  the  manual  in  addi- 
tion to  the  office  work  made  it  impossible  for  the  State  Supervisor 
to  meet  this  critical  need.  To  meet  it,  two  assistant  state  supervisors 
Avere  appointed.  We  tried  first  to  work  through  teachers'  institutes 
but  the  small  time  allowed  and  the  conflicting  interests  in  these 
institutes  made  results  very  unsatisfactory.  Therefore,  we  have 
developed  the  plan  of  making  trips  through  each  of  the  counties  where 
interpretations  and  practical  demonstrations  with  children  and  teachers 
are  given  in  a  series  of  communities  in  which  all  the  teachers  in  the 
surrounding  districts  are  drawn  together.  Superintendents  and  teach- 
ers have  praised  the  results  of  this  work  most  highly  and  striking 
results  were  being  gained  when  the  influenza  epidemic  interfered 
with  the  schedules. 

Third  Duty:  To  inspect  and  investigate  the  efficiency  and  results 
of  the  physical  education  in  the  various  schools  of  the  state.  For  the 
present  this  duty  is  associated  with  the  field  instruction:  Later  inspec- 
tion and  efficiency  surveys  will  be  conducted  both  to  estimate  the 
local  conditions  and  needs  of  the  children  and  the  efficiency  of  the 
program  in  the  local  schools  in  meeting  these  needs. 

Fourth  Duty:  To  pass  upon  teaching  qualifications  and  promote 
the  teacher  training  courses  in  physical  education  in  the  normal 
schools  and  universities.  Physical  education  in  the  schools  of  the 
state,  involving  the  physical  welfare  of  the  rising  generation,  will  be 
effective  just  in  proportion  as  elementary  teachers  are  trained  by  the 
normal  schools  to  perform  their  functions  adequately  on  the  physical 
and  moral  as  well  as  the  intellectual  sides  of  education ;  and  in  propor- 
tion as  universities  train  directors. 

Considerable  time  has  been  spent  in  promoting  adequate  teacher 
training  courses  both  in  the  normal  schools  and  universities.  Several 
of  the  normal  schools  stressed  the  training  of  elementary  teachers  for 


STATE  SUPERVISOR  OF  PHYSICAL  EDUCATION.  23 

physical  education  in  the  summer  sessions.  The  University  of  Cali- 
fornia organized  physical  education  courses  in  Los  Angeles  as  well 
as  at  Berkeley  and  the  University  of  Southern  California  also  organ- 
ized a  summer  session  course.  None  of  the  normal  schools,  however, 
are  meeting  the  needs  of  the  state  in  the  regular  school  year,  either 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  future  functions  of  the  teacher  candi- 
date in  teaching  physical  education,  or  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
personal  health,  vigor,  energy,  buoyancy,  etc.,  of  the  candidate  himself, 
which  is  so  important  for  the  wholesome  influence  of  the  teacher  on 
the  children.  Further,  not  one  of  the  universities  has  anything 
that  approaches  an  adequate  organization  of  professional  training 
courses  for  the  production  of  district  directors  or  supervisors  of 
elementary  schools  or  instructors  or  directors  for  the  high  schools. 

The  children  of  the  state  will  suffer  severely  until  these  institutions 
perform  their  functions  properly  in  giving  adequate  training  to  the 
teachers  of  the  state  in  physical  education. 

Considering  the  importance  of  physical  education  for  the  develop- 
ment and  welfare  of  the  children  of  the  state  and  the  breadth  of  the 
work  of  the  state  department,  it  is  evident  that  the  budget  provided 
by  the  law  is  entirely  inadequate. 


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